Content Warning: This section includes discussion of animal cruelty, graphic violence, racism, child death.

The stoneware jar that the Freeman family calls Old Mo is a symbol of their legacy, their history, and their family struggles in context of the larger challenges confronting African Americans over the course of US history. The jar itself, carved by Moses in South Carolina, came north when Willis escaped the Oldham plantation and has been in the Freeman family for six generations. The jar’s stories continue to be passed down and shared, and the artifact becomes not just an heirloom but a member of the family.

The jar is called Old Mo because beneath the dark glaze, the initials MO are visible—possibly standing for Moses Oldham. The jar can store 20 gallons and has a “broad mouth and earlike handles” (16). There is a small trail of leaves painted over the glaze, and the inscription besides the potter’s initials showcase the year of its creation: 1847. There is another inscription on the bottom that Moses wrote from the depths of his sorrow at the injustice done to Flora, Betsey, and others for whom he cared. His words, “The mind cannot be chained” (343), go on to inspire not just Willis but everyone who reads them.